Amazon's Part Finder feature helps you identify and purchase fasteners from your smartphone
It's a tale as old as time. You're working diligently on your latest DIY project only to discover that you don't have enough screws, nails, or other necessary parts to finish your piece. After a few heavy sighs, you stop what you're doing, drive to your local hardware store, and compare your fastener to a seemingly endless wall of parts in every size and shape imaginable. With the introduction of Amazon's Part Finder, however, this common inconvenience may soon be a thing of the past.
According to Sarah Perez for TechCrunch: "The feature is currently capable of identifying over 100 types of fasteners which represents thousands, if not millions of parts, Amazon says. It was built using technology developed by Partpic, a company Amazon acquired in 2016.
The feature takes advantage of the iPhone’s camera to identify the object in question – a process it walks you through when you first launch 'Part Finder' by tapping the Camera button next to the search box in the Amazon app."
According to Mark Wilson for Fast Company: "Part Finder’s superpower is the sheer specificity with which it can do the job. It can tell a SplitRivet from a WingNut and a flat head from a pan head. It can identify over 100 types of fasteners in all, 'which represents thousands, if not millions of parts,' according to Amazon. But crucially, Part Finder lists its own conclusions as tappable buttons. That means if Amazon gets something wrong–for instance, suggesting a Phillips head on your screw when you know you need something else–you can just tap that option to keep on shopping."
To learn more, read "Amazon launches Part Finder, built by technology it acquired from Partpic in 2016" from TechCrunch and "Amazon’s new feature is a DIYer’s dream" from Fast Company.
About the Author
Alexis GajewskiAlexis Gajewski
Senior Content Strategist
Alexis Gajewski is a manufacturing writer and editor with nearly 20 years of experience covering the people, practices, and technologies that keep industrial facilities running. For more than a decade, she served as Senior Content Strategist for Plant Services, creating content for plant managers, engineers, and maintenance professionals on a variety of industrial topics.
During her tenure, Alexis worked to develop the brand’s digital strategy and helped launch and produce Great Question: A Manufacturing Podcast. She also created The Lighter Side of Manufacturing, a weekly blog that explored the inventive and sometimes humorous side of the industry.
Alexis co-founded Influential Women in Manufacturing, a recognition program that honored 49 women in its first two years, earned an industry award for Best Product Launch, and received a proclamation from Illinois Governor JB Pritzker and a commendation from U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth.
She also led newsroom operations and development at a large media company where she set editorial standards, developed training curriculum, and helped support AI adoption for more than 150 editors across 80+ brands spanning manufacturing, industrial processing, automation, and more.
Additionally, Alexis works as a freelance writer and editor, and her areas of interest include continuous improvement, the skilled workforce, and the role of emerging technology on the plant floor.
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